Mary Rose Center raising funds to expand, relocate

Photo by MIKE JAQUAYS -- Oneida Medical Associates doctors, from left, Jennifer Quinn, Ofrana Reid and Rathika Martyn pose with a check for $21,000 to kick off a fundraiser for the Mary Rose Clinic in Oneida, of which Martyn is also the campaign chairperson. The fundraiser for the Oneida free clinic for the uninsured is seeking $300,000 to buy necessary equipment to best serve the needy of the Madison County area.

ONEIDA >> Business is booming for the Mary Rose Center, the health clinic for uninsured people of the Madison County area, said co-founder Dr. Rathika Martyn.

Martyn, who created the center with the Gorman Foundation in 2010, said this is actually bitter-sweet news.

"The bitter part is that there is an ever-expanding population of uninsured who need health care, but the sweet part is that the Mary Rose Center has grown in leaps and bounds, providing these folks with an all-encompassing service," Martyn explained. "Like any expansion, it comes at a price...we need new digs."

The new location has already been found, across from the current facility in Oneida's Northside Shopping Center in the soon-to-open 11,900 square foot Gorman Foundation Community Center.

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At the site of the old Rite Aid store, the Community Center will be home to several non-profit agencies under one roof, including the Mary Rose Center, the Community Action Partnership of Madison County, Karing Kitchen, the BOCES Consortium of Continuing Education, Madison County Reads Ahead, and the Madison County Literacy Coalition plus a community room offering special programs like diabetes education and smoking cessation classes, volunteer training events and public health outreach.

"What better place than the proposed Gorman Foundation Community Center, which is the right niche for our free clinic because it would sit amongst other not-for-profits that service a similar population," Martyn said. "I am looking forward to moving into this spacious layout, which I am sure will enable us to enhance care of our uninsured patients."

Martyn is the campaign chair for a fundraiser to finance the purchase of equipment for the new Mary Rose Center. The fundraiser is looking to raise $300,000 to pay for the cost of all of the special renovations required to house the free clinic in the Gorman Foundation Community Center, plus to outfit the additional exam rooms, waiting rooms and administrative offices with the necessary equipment.

The fundraiser kicked off on June 17 and will end once the money is raised and the clinic is completed. Martyn and her colleagues of Oneida Medical Associates have already made a commitment to donate $21,000 to the cause. An anonymous donor also came forward during the first week of the fundraiser with a pledge of $30,000.

Currently, the Mary Rose Center only has two dedicated examination rooms. The new clinic will have five exam rooms plus three intake rooms for the prescription assistance program, insurance enrollers and community health advocates to work in. Each room will need to be outfitted with desks, cabinets, and office supplies to best serve patients.

The clinic expects to more than double their capacity and hopes to eventually extend hours of operation into other days of the week as a result.

Gorman Foundation president, Amanda Larson, who is also a clinic and campaign volunteer, said the Gorman Foundation is a lead donor, purchasing the space for them to use rent free. She said she expects an expansion in volunteer staff at the clinic once the new facility is open.

"Right now we have so many people willing to volunteer but can't accommodate them in our current location," Larson said. "We don't have the space to assemble patient education packets or have people work on filing at the same time the clinic is running. Too many people in a very tight space create chaos. We currently have five doctors who volunteer regularly but would love to have more join our team, especially those available to help us open on additional days or nights of the week."

The Mary Rose Clinic has seen some 1,060 patients to date, making up around 2,550 patient visits since it opened in December 2010. While the new clinic will be around 4,000 square feet, the current facility is only 700, making for rather cramped quarters.

"We often have to put a sign on our door turning people away when we reach about 30 patients signed in for the four hours we are open," Larson said. "Ideally, in the new space, we can accommodate more volunteer doctors and get more patients in and out easier with more rooms. "

The bulk of the construction is expected to be completed by the end of summer, while the outfitting of exam rooms with the needed equipment will take a bit longer.

While the campaign is for the Mary Rose Center, donations will go through the Community Action Partnership, their 501c3 fiscal sponsor. Executive Director Julie Dale said the services of the clinic have been well-received by the uninsured people of Central New York.

"In just over two years of operation, the Mary Rose Center has proven there is a very real regional need and demand for a free clinic such as ours and we've been blessed with volunteer doctors, nurses and staff who agree and have stepped forward to help," she said.

Anyone wanting to donate to the campaign should contact Dale at 315-684-3144.

The Mary Rose Center is named for Larson's grandmother and Martyn's patient, Mary Rose Durfee of Sherrill. The clinic is currently located at 1072 Northside Shopping Center in Oneida and open Wednesdays from 4 to 8 p.m. No appointments are necessary.

Call them at 315-280-0855, fax to 315-367-0031, or email nverro@capmadco.org for more information on their offerings.